The principle of weaving in travelling wave shedding consists in that the loom is equipped with a plurality of weft inserters which are conveyed one after the other in the weaving process through a weaving zone in which they insert metered weft thread lengths into travelling sheds. Having left the weaving zone, the inserters return along an endless path back to the opposite fabric selvage where they are refilled by spooling units with fresh wefts for the next weaving cycle. The operation of such looms requires that the trailing end of the picked weft length be gripped and displaced to the fabric fell where it is to be held until interlaced into the fabric.
The invention relates to travelling-wave looms having a rotary reed for beating up a weft thread, introduced therein by each of a plurality of weft inserters, moving along an endless path past the reed into a fabric fell while the weft end is held tensioned in a space between a thrust plate and a toothed disc supported coaxial with the rotary reed.
In existing arrangements of this type, a stationary projection associated with the thrust plate helps to guide the weft thread from the inserter to the rotary reed. Such stationary projection must be positioned away from the path of movement of the weft inserter to avoid interference therewith. As a result, during the movement of the weft inserter away from the reed preparatory to the beat-up operation, severence of the weft thread from the inserter must be preceeded by a rotation of a guiding tooth on the disc to an appropriate location opposite the thrust plate in order to provide the required beat-up tension on the weft end. The extra length of weft thread which must be withdrawn from the inserter during this portion of the weft inserter movement represents waste length which has to be cut off the fabric selvedge after the beat-up operation.